Health Ministry: ‘We must make diagnosis and treatment of cancers more accessible for population’
The doctors told about the innovations in Tatarstan oncology
This year the regional concept of health preservation puts emphasis on cancers, its early diagnosis, treatment and the use of the most effective and advanced methods. Tatarstan allocates additional funds for re-equipment of the cancer centers, as well as for scientific research. The doctors presented the details of all projects in Tatarstan oncology at the specially organized press conference.
The cost of treatment of one patient — from 20 thousand to a million rubles
Ildar Khairullin, the head doctor of the Tatarstan Regional Clinical Cancer Center, at the press conference on innovations in Tatarstan oncology, started his speech by reminding that this year is declared by the Tatarstan President as a year of struggle against cancer.
In addition to the innovations in the diagnosis and treatment, Tatarstan is distinguished by the organizational innovation, it is recognized by the international experts and it is one of the most successful and effective,' said the speaker. 'In the Republic there are 75 primary oncological offices. Almost every polyclinic has doctors who have additional education in oncology and give the first oncological aid to the population.'
Interregional cancer treatment centers also do not remain without attention — it was created a project for the additional equipment provision of these diagnostic centers:
'We must make diagnosis more accessible to local people through the establishment of such centres,' said Khairullin. 'The branches are developing substantially, we are currently completing the design of radiological building in Almetyevsk. The goal is the same — to increase the accessibility of specialized care such as surgical, radiological and chemotherapeutic.'
According to the speaker, the detection of early forms of cancer of the first and second stages is 56%. Those, who undergo medical examination, the percentage is higher — 75.7%: 'That is why it is important the involvement of people in maintaining their health. Now we have launched a new social project 'Education against tumors' — people should not be afraid to find a tumor, it is important to do this at early stages. There are ten steps to reduce the risk of tumors: the examination of those who is predisposed to cancer who have relatives with cancer (10 — 15% of cancer is heredity), smoking cessation, fiber intake, no sun bathing from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. etc.'
According to the statistics, on January 1, 2016 in Tatarstan there were 92 thousand of cancer patients. The cost of treatment of one patient varies from 20 thousand to a million rubles, said Khairullin, depending on a stage of the disease.
Now it is possible to affect only a tumor, not the whole organism
Refat Kurtasanov, the deputy head doctor of the medical unit of the Tatarstan Regional Cancer Center, told about the applied innovative pharmaceuticals and methods. According to him, the opening in Tatarstan of the Nuclear Medicine Center has contributed to a new qualitative leap in the application of the unique diagnostic methods.
'It was a significant breakthrough which involved federal and Tatarstan money. In 2013, the Positron Emission Tomography Centre was opened,' said the deputy head doctor.
Tatarstan is one of the first regions that has launched this technology. For that reason, the production of radiopharmaceuticals has been established on the territory of the Clinic, in fact, a mini-factory, continues the doctor. He also noticed that they can boast that Tatarstan uses several radiopharmaceuticals. Besides, new radiopharmaceuticals for detection of brain tumors, prostate cancer have been introduced in practice.
'Also, the direction of merging of diagnostic and therapeutic methods of cancer treatment is developing. The special department has been opened where we develop new efficient method: we reach a vessel feeding a tumor and saturate a tumor with the drug without affecting the whole organism, only a tumor,' said Kurtasanov.
Geneticist against cancer: to predict and to treat
The work on cancer treatment is also being carried out at the genetic level: for example, the patients of Tatarstan have benefits because there are almost no such centers in Russia.
'Genetics in oncology gives an opportunity to increase the survival rate of a patient by 3-4 years, but this kind of therapy is not applicable for everyone, so the first aim of our lab is to help to prescribe it those whom it will help, as it is necessary to know a molecular map of a patient,' said Marat Gordiyev, the head of molecular genetic laboratory of the Tatarstan Cancer Clinic. 'We help not only Tatarstan doctors but also doctors from other regions.'
The second direction of the clinic work is the attempts to get preventive measures to identify genes showing whether there is a predisposition to cancer.
'Today in our country it is technologically difficult to carry out, it's resource-consuming, and we are implementing the work jointly with the Kazan Federal University and Japanese colleagues,' said Gordieyv.
According to him, starting from 2017 the implementation of the project begins, in the framework of which 150 people will have an opportunity to undergo this preventive screening, the indication for which is relatives suffering from cancer.
Every 4th patient — a woman with breast cancer
Artur Ismagilov, a professor, the chief non-staff specialist, a plastic surgeon in the Volga Federal district, an oncologist of the mammology branch of the Tatarstan Cancer Clinic told about the achievements in the struggle against breast cancer.
'We have moved to a new stage of development: previously, we tried simply to keep a patient alive, but now, having achieved some success, we already seek to preserve the quality of life after tumor removal,' he says.
Over the past 15 years, the survival rate of patients with breast cancer has increased by 70%, he says, noting that this is not only due to early diagnosis but also due to the quality of treatment. Now the rehabilitation and the patient's quality of life have the same significance as the preservation of life. In August, an operation by a new method of breast reconstruction by a free perforator flap was performed for the first time.
'Not damaging the muscles, the problem is solved,' stresses Ismailov. 'This operation was not declarative, we immediately wanted to introduce it in regular practice. This is the top of plastic surgery, we constantly receive applications from other regions of the country and the CIS countries, but for the women of Tatarstan there are all kinds of operations,' said the doctor.
According to the statistics, every 4th patient coming to the clinic — a woman with breast cancer.